Oil Spills Into Creek Near Santa Clara River

Between 2,100 and 4,200 gallons of oil has spilled into a creek that winds along Wheeler Canyon Road, and authorities are trying to determine whether the spill is from natural seepage or a broken pipe line.

Firefighters, environmental health specialists and state Department of Fish and Game representatives arrived at the site shortly before 2 p.m. Thursday after a resident contacted the county’s public works office, authorities said.

Officials found oil flowing slowly out of a hillside into a canyon between Ventura and Santa Paula. The oil was mixing with creek water and had traveled about two miles toward the Santa Clara River but had not reached the waterway.

“We don’t know if it’s a natural seep or a break,” said Chris Long, a Department of Fish and Game spokesman. “If it’s determined to be natural, we’ll walk away from it. But if it’s found to be caused by man, we’ll obviously conduct an investigation and oversee a cleanup. And we may or may not file a complaint with the district attorney.”

State legislation prohibits the agency from using its funds to control natural seepage, which is common in Ventura County but usually in much smaller quantities than found in the incident reported Thursday, authorities said.

The spill was reported at the north end of Wheeler Canyon Road near a section of abandoned oil collection facilities once operated by Unocal Corp., Long said.

Firefighters and hazardous materials specialists were called to the same location in June 1998 after a resident spotted a two-mile stretch of stream and creek bed that was covered by a sheen of oil.

A handful of residents whose homes line the creek have complained for years that a sheen of oil has continually covered the waterway. Authorities say little can be done, because earthquakes and heavy rains often trigger natural seepage.

Such was the case in February 1993 when heavy rains contributed to a 1,000-gallon oil spill at the same site. Debris had clogged an old pipe on the Unocal property, causing a storage tank to overflow.

Long said Department of Fish and Game officials will return to the site today to determine the cause of the oil spill. Rugged terrain prevented further investigation Thursday, he added.

“[Seepage] occasionally happens but probably more so in the wintertime, because the creek has more water in it,” Long said. “It has happened more frequently since Unocal abandoned its facilities” more than two years ago.